European Secrets (Madrid - Vol. One) by Ana Vela

 
    ~Madrid: Vol. 1 ~
    “ So
it’s finalized, then? Four men in four cities? Four encounters?”
Annie sat at her desk overlooking Georgetown. She scribbled notes
as she spoke with her agent, considering the possibilities of
sexual anonymity. An engineered adventure with four muses, all
fruit for her inspiration. She needed lust, and she needed the
unknown. And perhaps she needed to test the barriers of what she
thought she wanted. Doubt still crept its fingers around the
frontier of her decision-making.
     
    “ And
you’re sure these guys are all legit and attractive? Sorry to sound
so shallow, but they have to be.” Her eyes darted around the
office. Her door was open, leading to a shared hallway. Hopefully
no one had heard her blunt discrimination. Or discovered the extra
help her agent was giving her under the radar.
     
    “ Yes, it’s all arranged. Four encounters in four cities.
They’re all expecting the call when you arrive. The first will be a
massage therapist in Madrid. You can still back out. Just make up
your mind quick. You’ve got to be sure you want to do this. And if
this fucks with your head, remember it was your idea. I’m happy to
help if it means you write another book that sells that many
copies.”
     
    Annie laughed at her tone. “I’m a big girl, Kate. I want
this. Maybe I’ll fuck them all. I don’t know yet, but it’s
definitely going to help me write my next book. No one will know
who I am there, anyway. Christ, no one knows who I am anyway . God bless
pseudonyms.”
     
    Kate snorted. “Well,
we’ll see how you feel after the first one. See if you verify my
assumptions on the type of men you like. Or you think you like. I
have some backups.”
     
    “ Backups?” Annie’s ears pricked up at the extra flexibility.
At more opportunity. The plan was promising, but had its risks and
potential for disaster.
     
    “ I
know a lot of men, Annie. Don’t ask me how.”
     
    “ Are
they all local to each city?” She heard footsteps pass along the
hallway and lowered her voice.
     
    “ I
can’t say. Remember this is about the unknown . I’m not going to spoil it
for you. Don’t self-destruct before you’ve begun this...this
adventure you’ve persuaded me to engineer for you. And remember you
get the expense bill.” She laughed and sighed, then slurped coffee
in Annie’s ear.

    “ You’re paying these guys? I said I didn’t want escorts. I
feel filthy just thinking about it. And you’re damn sure these guys
aren’t creepy? Not batemen-in-waiting?”
     
    “ I’m
not a pimp. No. I’m talking travel expenses, within the budget you
agreed. None of them is creepy. A little kinky, some of them, but
not creepy. Trust me, I know them, or they’re very close friends of people I
know. Like I said before, someone will know where you are every
time.”
     
    “ I
trust you. So Madrid is about being pampered, I guess. What about
the other three themes?” She thumbed through her notebook, looking
for notes she’d scrawled earlier. “The novel is in four
parts. Pampered, Spoiled for Choice,
Lured and... Bound .”
     
    “ They’ll be revealed, Annie…”
    **********
     
    “ Welcome to Madrid! Vacaciones?” The cab driver’s broken
English carried over the radio’s flamenco music as he drove fifteen
miles above the speed limit through the late afternoon traffic.
Annie was wary from jet lag but wired from airplane coffee. She
gripped the worn leather of the back seat as a sharp turn down
another cobbled backstreet threw her sideways.
     
    “ No,
I’m here to write. I’m a writer. Just here for three days.” Her
voice sounded scratched in her ears, and her eyes, still dry from
the eight-hour flight, squinted in the harsh sunlight. Her feet
ached, and she longed for a mattress. Just an hour to
rest.
     
    “ Ah!
A writer? Muy bien! You are so beautiful...you are married?”
     
    Ugh. The marriage
question. She still heard it. “No, I’m single.” She fumbled for a
rapid